UCSD Marxs Critique of Capital in the 21st Century Essay

Guidelines
Essay Subject: Marx’s Critique of Capital in the 21 st Century: Capitalism, Exploitation and Its Alternatives

General Guidelines:
We devoted the second part of this course to Marx’s works. While we read part of the Communist Manifesto he co-authored with Fredreich Engels, we also focused on his most accomplished work namely, Capital. Of all the theories covered in this course, it is beyond question that Marx’s critique of capital has been the most influential—not necessarily in academia, but surely in the real world. As a theory that contributed significantly to the shaping of twentieth-century history, Marx’s account of capitalism deserves close study and evaluation. Considering this, the main goal of the essay is to show that you can explain and evaluate the continuing relevance (or lack thereof) of Marx’s theory of capital accumulation. 

As discussed in class, Marx’s work was influenced by Adam Smith’s labor theory of value. But Marx went beyond Smith in developing a critique of how accumulation was in fact underpinned by an unequal relationship of exploitation between capitalists and workers. In Capital, thus, he focused on revealing the real workings of capital accumulation (This is where his
theory of surplus value/exploitation is central). Marx’s theory is still contested today. In other words, the extent to which Marx’s theory is still useful is partly decided by how we interpret his writings, but mostly by the unfolding of reality itself.
Considering all of the above: how relevant is Marx’s theory today? This is the overarching question guiding your essay. In order to address it, however, you should provide a general overview of Marx’s theory of capitalism and then evaluate the extent to which it is still relevant today. The essay, then, will focus on explaining Marx’s theory of capital. This means
showing the elements of Marx’s critique, in particular: his labor theory of value, his narrative about class struggle, his theory of accumulation and exploitation (or surplus value). By explaining to the reader Marx’s theory, you can show your understanding of it and then provide your argument regarding the question of Marx’s continuing or declining relevance.